


Way Back When

by pupeez4eva



Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Brother-Sister Relationships, Gen, M/M, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-03
Updated: 2018-06-03
Packaged: 2019-05-17 17:24:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14835972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pupeez4eva/pseuds/pupeez4eva
Summary: Liv ends up in the past and meets a young, still-in-the-closet Aaron.





	Way Back When

She had no idea how she’d gotten here, but she was starting to feel like all that drinking had messed with her head after all. Maybe Aaron did have a point…though that wasn’t something she really wanted to be thinking about right now. 

 

The last thing she remembered was walking to her room at the Youth Offender’s Centre after that disastrous visit from Aaron and Robert. She’d been furious, thinking, _‘What gives him a right to say any of that?!’_ Aaron, who in her opinion didn’t have a right to be lecturing _anyone_ on bad coping methods. Aaron, who always seemed to make everything about himself.

 

She remembered walking into her room, slamming the door behind her, and turning around — and then suddenly she was here, back in the village, and wondering if she was losing her mind. 

 

She looked around warily. Yes, it was definitely the village. She pinched herself, and felt a sharp jab of pain, but the image of the village didn’t waver. Well, who knew if that old ‘pinch yourself to see if your dreaming’ thing even worked anyway. She was obviously either dreaming or losing her mind, and she knew which one she’d prefer.

 

She walked forward, her steps slow and cautious, taking in her surroundings. Everything looked the same. She saw a few people walk across the street who she didn’t recognise her, which surprised her somewhat; the village was pretty small, and even though she’d only been there for a little over two years now, she’d gotten to know almost everyone. It wasn’t often that she saw unfamiliar faces around here.

 

She was standing still, staring, when she felt someone bumped into her.

 

“Hey!” Liv snapped. She glanced up to see who had bumped into her, and saw the backs of two people — a blonde man, and a woman with long black hair — before they both turned around, and Liv saw that while the man was yet another unfamiliar face, the woman was someone she knew very well.

 

“Oh, sorry,” Chas said, giving her a quick smile. “Didn’t see you there.”

 

Liv stared at her, eyes wide in surprise. Chas looked so _different._ The hair was different, obviously (and Liv really didn’t like the change), but there was something about her that just looked younger _._

 

Obviously being pregnant was doing wonders for her. That, or it was the hair, although Liv doubted it.

 

“Can I help you?” Chas asked, raising on eyebrow. The man looked on, frowning in confusion.

 

“Uh…nice hair? When did you change it?” 

 

Chas blinked. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”

 

_‘Hold on, what?’_ Liv opened her mouth and closed it, unsure of what to say. What the _hell?_ Chas looked genuinely confused, so Liv didn’t think she was having her on, but then, what was going on here?

 

Well…on the other hand, it wasn’t like any of this situation made any sense, so why should it start to now?

 

The man put an arm around Chas’s shoulders and drew her close, and Liv was brought out of her thoughts. Her eyes widened. What were they _doing?_ She expected Chas to shove him off, and wasn’t even sure what to think when she simply snuggled closer to him.

 

She gave Liv a brief glance and said, “Well, it was nice meeting you.” They turned around and walked off, ignoring Liv’s open-mouthed stare. She watched as Chas leaned closer to the man, said something to him (her eyes briefly flickering back towards Liv, giving her an idea of what they were talking about) and they both laughed.

 

“What the hell?” Liv said, watching as they disappeared around the corner. “When did Chas and Paddy break up?”

 

“You’re a little slow, aren’t you?” 

 

Liv jumped slightly and whirled around. “Don’t sneak up on me!” she snapped, glaring. 

 

She stopped and stared.

 

“Sorry,” the girl — who Liv was fairly certain was Victoria Sugden, only about ten years younger, which, like the rest of this situation, made _absolutely no sense —_ said, laughing. Her brow furrowed, and she cocked her head to the side slightly. “Never seen you around here before. Are you a friend of Chas or Paddy’s?”

 

“No,” Liv said, still staring at her. Crap, she looked _just_ like Victoria. Did Rob have another sister that he’d never mentioned before. “Who are you?” 

 

The Vic-lookalike blinked. “Oh! I’m Victoria. And you are…?” 

 

A sister with the exact same name as his other sister. She pinched herself again. Nothing. Oh God, she was definitely losing it.

 

“Did you just pinch yourself?” Vic asked, looking at her strangely. Liv said nothing, her gaze focused past her shoulder. “Hey — are you okay?” 

 

“Uh…” She took a step back. “I need to go.”

 

“Wait — hey! Are you okay?” 

 

Liv ignored her, keeping her head down, and hurrying in the other direction. She couldn’t hear anyone following her, and a quick glance over her shoulder showed that Vic was still in the same spot, staring after her with wide, confused eyes.

 

Liv turned around and kept walking. She kept her head down, passing a few other people, but not bothering to look at them for fear of what she would see.

 

_‘This is crazy. This is insane. Oh my god, what the hell is going on?’_

 

She’d been in the Youth Offender’s Centre…she’d fought with Aaron…she’d gone to her room…what else? What else had happened?

 

Nothing, that’s what. She’d turned around and she’d been here. Wherever _here_ was. It looked like home, but everything was warped, and strange, and everyone looked _younger…_

 

She stopped, stood still, the words _time travel_ flittering through her mind, and she let out a slightly hysterical laugh. Yes, she was definitely losing it.

 

…

 

She wasn’t sure what to do. Her panic and confusion had persisted and had eventually given way to an odd sense of acceptance. Nothing about this situation was normal. She didn’t know what was going on. She didn’t know how to fix this.

 

So. She was just going to wait until it fixed itself. 

 

She’d walked past where the Scrapyard should have been but obviously wasn’t, stared at it for a moment, and then kept walking. She passed Gabby’s mum on the street, who shot her a curious glance, looking a lot younger than the last time Liv had seen her. Somehow Liv didn’t think it was down to all those beauty treatments, and the thought made her laugh out loud. 

 

A boy passed her and shot her an odd glance (she wasn’t sure if it was because no one knew her here, or because she was laughing alone) and Liv realised that it was Adam.

 

She stopped, staring at him with wide eyes. He paused, gave her a cautious, confused nod in acknowledgement, and continued walking. 

 

_‘Oh my God,’_ Liv thought, because Adam’s presence had just reminded her that _Aaron_ was around here somewhere. Some younger version of her big brother, who would’ve been around her age. God, that was just too weird.

 

She somehow ended up outside the Woolpack, and sat at a nearby table, staring at the grass. Just over an hour had passed since she’d first arrived here, and nothing had changed. As far as she could tell, she was stuck — and maybe she should’ve been focusing more attention on fixing this and getting home (or putting an end to this insane hallucination, if that’s what it was) but she wasn’t even sure where to start, and the thought of it made her head spin.

 

“You again.” Liv glanced up, dragged from her thoughts. Chas was standing over her, looking at her curiously.

 

“Um,” Liv said, unsure of what to say.

 

“Have I done something to you?” Chas asked, sitting across from her. The hair made her look different — not as warm and open as she usually looked. “Because you’re staring at me like I have two heads.”

 

“No,” Liv said quickly. “I’m, er, a friend of Aaron’s.” The words came out before she really thought about them.

 

“Oh.” Chas looked surprised.

 

Liv nodded. “Yeah.” Then, though she wasn’t even sure why she was asking, she asked, “Do you know where he is?” 

 

Somehow, the thought of meeting a younger Aaron was strangely appealing, although Liv wasn’t sure what she’d do with the information if Chas told her. This whole situation was crazy, and she’d been trying to avoid anyone she knew in her own time. She _was_ curious — maybe she and Aaron weren’t on the best terms at the moment, but that didn’t really matter — but, at the same time, the thought of actually meeting him also seemed a bit _too_ weird.

 

Chas gave a sharp laugh. “Hell if I know these days.”

 

Liv stared.

 

“He’ll probably be at Paddy’s,” she amended, when Liv continued to stare at her, surprised by her response. Why _wouldn’t_ Chas know? Aaron lived with her, didn’t he? “I can give you the address if you want.”

 

“No,” Liv said quickly, shaking her head. _Too weird._ She wasn’t sure she wanted to see a younger version of her brother anyway. “That’s fine, I was just — ” She thought for a moment, “ — stopping by. Thought I’d say hello since I was here anyway, but I’ve got to leave soon.”

 

Chas shrugged. “Suit yourself.” 

 

Liv opened her mouth, intending to come up with an excuse to leave, when the blonde man from before walked over and came to a stop next to Chas. 

 

He looked at her curiously. “Hi again.” 

 

Chas smiled. “This is my boyfriend, Carl,” she told her. Liv spared another glance at him. _Carl_. She’d never seen him before, and no one had ever mentioned him to her, so obviously things hadn't worked out. “Carl, this is — sorry, what did you say your name was?”

 

“Liv,” Liv said, and then wondered if she shouldn’t have given her real name.

 

“She’s a friend of Aaron’s.”

 

Carl snorted. “He has friends?” 

 

Liv stared at him.

 

“Carl!” Chas shot him a quick glare, and then turned back to Liv. “Sorry about him, those two have never gotten on. So, where do you know Aaron from?” 

 

Liv wracked her brain for an answer, thinking, _‘Dammit, why did you say you knew Aaron?’_ Luckily Carl — who Liv had decided was a grade-A prat — interrupted before she could reply.

 

“Chas, we should probably go in now. Jimmy and Nicola are waiting inside.”

 

Chas blinked. “Oh right.” She turned to Liv and smiled. “It was nice talking to you. Hopefully you find Aaron before you leave.”

 

“Might not want to mention that you spoke to us though,” Carl said, rolling his eyes. “He’s like a rabid dog whenever Chas or I are brought up.”

 

“Carl, honestly, that’s enough,” Chas snapped, shooting him a warning glance. Liv didn’t think she was being nearly as forceful as she could’ve been, which was strange because Chas was usually like a lioness when it came to protecting Aaron.

 

The two got up and walked inside, while Liv stared after them.

 

…

 

It was late. She was _still_ here.

 

She sat on a park bench, staring silently ahead of her. It was cold out, and her flimsy clothes were doing nothing to protect her from it. She was starting to regret not asking Chas for Aaron’s address, but then, what would she have said to him? _“Hi, I’m your sister from the future. I think I’m stuck here for the time being, so do you think I can stay with you for a while?”_

 

He’d either laugh in her face or tell her to piss off. There was a hollow feeling in her chest as she thought about it, and she quickly shook it off, remembering her words to Aaron — _her_ Aaron — back at the Youth Offender’s Centre.

 

She needed to figure out what she was going to do. She’d be here for hours, and she couldn’t stay on a park bench all night. Maybe she could go to the B&B…no, that wouldn’t work — she didn’t have any money on her.

 

She wracked her brain for somewhere to stay. It wasn’t like she had many friends to begin with — Gabby, Jacob and Gerry were pretty much where it ended — but she couldn’t stay with any of them for obvious reasons. Gabby would’ve been around eight years old at this point. 

 

She couldn’t ask any of Aaron’s family either. None of the Dingles would know who she was. And Rob, he was out of the question too — she didn’t even think he was in the village at the moment. She was alone here.

 

She stood up, folding her arms around her and pressing them close, trying to keep warmth. She needed to get out of here and figure out a plan. Sitting on a park bench and feeling sorry for herself wasn’t going to fix anything. 

 

She took a step forward, and felt someone slam into her, sending her stumbling. 

 

_‘That’s the second person today,’_ Liv thought, shaking herself off. 

 

“Watch where you’re going!” a male voice snapped. Liv felt a burst of anger — _he_ was the one who had bumped into _her —_ but her words caught in her throat when she looked up and realised that _Aaron_ was standing in front of her.

 

Aaron _._ Her big brother, who looked so _young_ here. His beard was gone — Liv didn’t think she’d ever seen him without at least stubble on his face — and his head was shaved. He looked so different that she was surprised she’d even recognised him.

 

He gave her another glare and whirled around. There was a backpack slung on his back. 

 

“Wait!” Liv called after him. She couldn’t let him leave. Maybe she hadn’t wanted to actively look for him, but now that he was _here,_ she couldn’t just let him leave without at least talking to him.

 

“What do you want?!” Aaron snapped, glaring at her. Well obviously his manners had improved _a lot_ in the future. Then again, he’d never been the most cheerful bloke, so maybe it was just that he never snapped at her. 

 

“I — ” Liv paused, studying Aaron’s face. He looked angry, that much was obvious, but there was something off about him, and it took Liv a moment to realise what it was. It had been hard for her to see with how dark it was, but now that she was standing closer to him, she could see that his eyes were rimmed red, and that his cheeks looked wet. He’d been crying.

 

“Are you alright?” she asked, concerned. 

 

His glare deepened. “Mind your own business.” He took a step away from her, obviously preparing to leave.

 

Liv reached out and grabbed his arm. She couldn’t just let him leave like that when he was upset. Maybe this wasn’t _her_ Aaron, not exactly, but he was still her brother. And maybe she wasn’t on the best terms with ‘her’ Aaron at the moment, but — well, he was _still her brother._

 

Aaron tensed and then shoved her off, sending her stumbling back. “What do you _want?!”_ he demanded, whirling around. “Mind your own damn business.”

 

“Thanks for that,” she said, rubbing her arm and glaring. “I only wanted to know if you’re okay. You’ve obviously been crying.”

 

“I have _not!”_

 

“You have tear tracks on your face,” Liv told him flatly.

 

Aaron reached up and rubbed furiously at his cheeks.

 

“If you want to talk…well, I’m not going anywhere.” Liv gestured at the park bench. “We could sit over there and — ”

 

“This is so stupid,” Aaron spat, lowering his hand and giving her another glare. She was starting to think that it was his default expression. She’d never thought her brother had been like _this._ Hadn’t people told them they’d been similar? Surely _she_ wasn’t this bad. “I’m leaving.” 

 

A part of Liv wanted to let him go. There was a slight feeling of resentment forming within her, a reminder of her current feelings towards the older version of her brother back home — but she couldn’t shake off her concern, something she felt whenever she saw that Aaron was upset. 

 

She walked after him after a moment of hesitation. He glanced over his shoulder, and looked incredulous when he saw that she was following him.

 

“Are you _kidding_ me?! What the hell is your _problem?”_

 

“Obviously I’m an escapee from a mental asylum.” _‘Nope, just a Youth Offender’s Centre…sort of.’_ “I’m going to follow you around for the rest of eternity. Or until you kill me.”

 

“Which is going to happen _really_ soon if you don’t leave me alone,” Aaron said, obviously unimpressed.

 

“Tell me what’s wrong then.”

 

“Why do you — what — oh, for God’s sake, _fine._ I messed up, okay? Big time. I beat up the only person who’d ever cared about me, and I ruined _everything,_ and I can’t ever go back there.” He breathed heavily, his chest heaving. Liv stared at him, her eyes wide in surprise. “There — I told you what was wrong. Now _go away!”_

 

Liv didn’t move, more out of surprise than anything, but it seemed to make Aaron even angrier. 

 

“Oh my God. Are you — are you _actually_ mental? Do you really want to hear about this? Because fine — I’ll tell you. I’ll tell you about how no one ever cared, not my mum, not — not anyone, not until Paddy came along. And then I ruined everything. I hurt him. Because it’s _what I do._ So now I’m going to get the hell out of here because — because I can’t stay here.”

 

Now that he’d started speaking, the words seemed to be pouring out, and Liv struggled to keep up with what he was saying. He’d beaten _Paddy_ up? _Paddy?_ Liv couldn’t comprehend why he’d do that — Paddy, who everyone said was like a dad to Aaron, who Aaron obviously adored. 

 

Aaron walked over to the bench and sank down, burying his head in his hands. Liv followed him and sat down beside him. He glanced up, seeming surprised that she was still here. Liv saw that his eyes were wet.

 

“You should go home,” she told him. 

 

She didn’t know much about what his life was like back here — she’d _thought_ she had. Aaron had suffered more than anyone should throughout his childhood thanks to Gordon, but Liv had always thought that he’d had a great life after coming here. How could he not, with a mum like Chas, a surrogate dad like Paddy, a family like the Dingles, and supportive friends like Victoria and Adam? Though Liv knew her brother had endured more pain in his life than most people double his age, she’d envied him somewhat for what he’d eventually found here.

 

But _this…_ none of this matched up with how she’d imagined his life here. She thought about how Chas had seemed so dismissive of Aaron, how she hadn’t even known where he was. She thought about Aaron’s words — _no one ever cared —_ and thought about all those lonely years she’d spent with her mum before she’d met Aaron and Robert.

 

Maybe she didn’t know her brother as well as she’d thought. 

 

“What the hell do you know?” Aaron asked, although he sounded more tired than angry by this point.

 

Liv hesitated. “I know what it’s like to be tossed aside,” she said at last. She thought about her dad, and the awful things he’d done to her brother, and how he’d tried to use her when he’d come back into her life. She thought about her mum, who had never been the same since they’d left Gordon. The guilt of everything that had happened had eaten her up, and she’d been too lost in the past to ever be a real Mum to her. Aaron and Robert had told her about what had happened with Lisa and the ketamine but she hadn't come to the trial. She hadn’t even tried to visit.

 

“And I know what it’s like to be given a second chance,” she added. This time, she thought about her brother. She remembered the things she’d said to Aaron earlier that day — about how he was self-centred, about how he made everything all about him. About how she could never depend on him. That wasn’t completely true, was it? He’d given her a home, even after she’d been a right brat, even after she’d taken Gordon’s side over his. He’d always taken her side without question, stood up for her, defended her — after that everything that had happened with Gabby, and the party, he’d been wonderful to her.

 

And Robert…Robert had been there for her too. She’d been awful to him when she’d first shown up, but he had never treated her badly, or demand that Aaron make her leave. She briefly thought about Chas’s boyfriend, Carl-the-blonde-prat, and what he’d said about Aaron. Robert had never treated her like that. She’d tried to get him _locked up,_ and he’d still forgiven her for it.

 

Sure, he’d messed up with the whole Rebecca situation, but he’d made up for it in the end. And Aaron…he wasn’t perfect, but he was her brother, and he’d always tried to do his best for her. 

 

Besides, they were a family, and what family was perfect?

 

(Huh. She had a lot to think about when this was all over).

 

Aaron was staring at her, a small frown on his face. He wasn’t yelling at her to go away anymore, and Liv took that as a good sign.

 

“The thing is…I’ve messed up loads of times. But they — my family — have always been there for me.” 

 

She really needed to have a chat with Aaron when she got back. _If_ she got back — she tried not to dwell on that too much. 

 

Aaron sighed. “You don’t know what I’ve done. Paddy’ll be done with me now.”

 

“He told you that, did he?”

 

“No…”

 

Liv shrugged. “Well there you go. I told you I’ve done stupid things, yeah? I tried to get Rob locked up in prison once. And I’ve said some pretty awful things to A — to my brother.”

 

“Prison,” Aaron repeated, raising an eyebrow. “What did he do?”

 

“Mind your own business,” Liv said, smiling cheekily.

 

Aaron’s scowl returned and he moved to get up.

 

“Hey, I was just kidding!” she said. Obviously he was lacking a sense of humour too. Her Aaron wasn’t this bad, was he? 

 

“I have to go,” Aaron said, avoiding her gaze.

 

Liv sighed. “He didn’t do anything. He was just trying to help my brother, and he messed up a bit, and I wanted him gone.”

 

Aaron was quiet for a few moments, and Liv was sure he wasn’t going to say anything. Then, quietly, “I…made Paddy’s life hell ever since I showed up here. I’m surprised he even wants me around anymore.”

 

“Yeah, well, I can say the same thing about myself,” Liv told him. “Sometimes I think I’m just a bother. That they’d be better off without me. But…I dunno. They do care.”

 

Aaron swallowed, a distant look in his eye. “I just — I lost it tonight. Paddy found out about — ” He caught himself, shaking his head. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter anyway.”

 

He stood in front of her for a moment, his hands tightening against the straps of his backpack. Liv didn’t think she’d ever seen such a lost expression on his face before.

 

“Are you going home?” she asked him.

 

Aaron hesitated for a moment and then shook his head. “No I — I can’t.” He gave her a brief nod. “Bye.”

 

She thought about stopping him. Maybe she could follow him, go with him to wherever he was going now, but she didn't think he’d be happy with some strange girl following him around. She was pretty sure the only reason he’d told her about any of that was because he'd been just about ready to burst by that point.

 

She watched him disappear down the road, and found herself missing her own brother more than ever.

 

…

 

She got sent home not long after that. One moment she was sitting on that bench, staring miserably at the empty street in front of her, and the next moment she was back in her room at the Youth Offender’s Centre. 

 

Even now, months after it had all happened, Liv still didn’t know what had happened. She wasn’t sure if it was some strange dream, or if she’d really time-travelled. She wasn’t sure if it mattered. 

 

She’d spoken to Aaron and Robert several times after that. She hadn’t brought up her little trip, or any of the things the younger version of her brother had told her, and she honestly wasn’t sure if she would until she stepped into the Mill for the first time in months.

 

“Aaron?” she said, turning to him. “Did you — er, did you ever beat Paddy up?” She’s sure she could’ve phrased the question better than that, but she really just wanted to know if any of it had been real.

 

Aaron looked surprised. “Who told you that?”

 

Liv shrugged. “I don’t remember exactly. I was just wondering why, I guess.” She thought about how distressed he’d been, how sure he’d been that Paddy would never want to see him again. She thought about what he’d nearly told her — _if Paddy ever found out._ Found out about what?

 

She took a moment to process that it had been _real,_ but wasn’t as surprised as she’d thought she would be.

 

Robert, who had been carrying Seb inside, shot them a quizzical look.

 

“Wow, that was a long time ago,” Aaron said, a distant look in his eyes. He frowned slightly. “I lost it that night. I’ll always regret hurting Paddy like that. He’d found out, and I didn’t even know what I was doing. I just lost it.” Seeing Liv’s confused expression, he elaborated, “He found out that I was gay.”

 

Liv stared at him in surprise. “You beat Paddy up because he found out you were gay?”

 

Aaron nodded. “I couldn’t deal with it back then. I was terrified that no one would accept me…I thought my mum would hate me, that the family would want nothing to do with me, that Paddy would kick me out.”

 

“They wouldn’t,” Liv said. The Dingles and Paddy loved Aaron. How could he ever think they wouldn’t accept him?

 

“It’s not as easy as that,” Robert said, coming to stand close to them. “It sounds like it should be but — well, I was terrified of _Vic_ finding out about me, and she’s one of the most accepting, open-minded people I know. Sometimes…you just get so caught up in everything you’re afraid of, and they become your reality.”

 

Liv thought back to how upset Aaron had looked and sounded that night. He’d honestly been terrified. For a moment she didn’t understand it, but then she remembered her encounter with Chas, and how Aaron had spoken about his mum, and decided that she obviously didn’t know much about her brother’s life before she’d re-entered it.

 

She knew him now though, and she loved him. Loved _all_ of them. Him, Rob, Seb — they were a family, and even though they weren’t perfect, even though they messed up sometimes, she wouldn’t change it for the world.

 

She thought about Aaron, and how he was with his family now. He’d found his place, with Chas, and with Paddy, with the rest of the Dingles — and with them. Maybe he’d struggled back then, maybe he’d had an even harder life than Liv had thought, but he’d found his family in the end.

 

Liv smiled. No, she wouldn’t change this for the world.

**Author's Note:**

> I just want to make it clear what timelines this fic involved in-case I wasn't clear enough in the fic - with Liv, it's right after that visit from Robert and Aaron where she fights with Aaron, and tells him she doesn't want him to visit her again. In the past, it's on the day when Paddy finds out that Aaron is gay, and Aaron panics and attacks him. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this! I've really been wanting to write this fic for ages, but kept putting it off. I'm glad I finally got around to doing it :)


End file.
